Where is Iraq today, 20 years after the US-led invasion?

In this edition of Your Call, we celebrate the 20th anniversary of the US invasion of Iraq.

The invasion and occupation of Iraq resulted in widespread death and destruction and increased sectarian tensions, culminating in a violent civil war. More than 300,000 Iraqis have died as a result of direct military violence, and 9.2 million have been internally displaced, according to Brown University’s Costs of War Project.

Coalition forces, including the United States and the United Kingdom, dropped thousands of indiscriminate cluster munitions in populated areas and spent indiscriminate airstrikes who killed civilians. US forces also subjected detainees to Abu Ghraib and other places of detention for torture, including sexual abuse and humiliation; mistakenly killed protesters; and hired private military contractors who killed and wounded dozens of civilians. Great Britain strength are responsible for the mistreatment of hundreds of Iraqi prisoners, including torture and unlawful killings, according to a new Human Rights Watch report.

Guest

Dr. Omar SirriResearch Fellow, Department of Politics and International Studies, SOAS, University of London.

Web resources:

The Guardian: We Iraqis have outlived Saddam Hussein. It was the US invasion that ruined our lives

The Guardian: Guns, money and frozen chicken: Militia boss distributes aid in Baghdad

The Guardian: After a million lives, I cannot forgive what American terrorism has done to my country, Iraq